Large fire destroys vehicles, damages buildings at Vancouver's PNE fairgrounds

A large fire at the Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) fairgrounds in Vancouver's Hastings Park led to the destruction of multiple vehiclesearly Sunday morning.

The Vancouver Police Department said in a statement the fire is being treated as suspicious, and 20 vehicles were damaged.

No injuries were reported.

The fire was reported around 12:30 a.m., according to Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services.

Multiple fuel tanks and propane tanks exploded late Saturday, leading to a three-alarm response from firefighters.

The garden shop at the fairgrounds was destroyed bythe fire. Multiple vehicles, two Zamboni ice resurfacers, and about a dozen trucks were also destroyed.

"[The fire was caused by] what we call a heavy fuel load," said Brian Bertuzzi, Vancouver's assistant fire chief. "The shops were quite full."

Bertuzzi confirmed two other shops were damaged on the PNE fairgrounds, and more than 40 firefighters responded to the incident.

Emergency responders intend to stay on scene Sunday until the cause of the fire is determined.

According to a statement from PNE, the fire was confined to an area that had two buildings. The buildings housedoffice space, workshops, and supplies including fair memorabilia.

The fair organization says equipment and tools were lost in one of the buildings, but the full extent of damages was not provided.

"The Pacific National Exhibition would like to thank the firefighters from Vancouver Fire Rescue Services," the statement reads. "It was due to their quick work that the fire was contained to only one of the buildings and significant damage and losses were prevented."

The roads around Hastings Park were cordoned off for multiple blocks after the fire broke out, with loud blasts heard in the area due to exploding fuel tanks.

Hastings Park was the site of a confrontation between vaccine mandate protesters and counter-protesters earlier on Saturday, but no violence was reported and protesters mostly stayed apart.